IN REPLY to a question regarding common expenses in the Cyprus Weekly this week it is stated that:

All should pay the same per sq m. …charges should depend on the size of the building/flat excluding gardens, open verandas etc, only the covered areas, including the covered verandas should count.

I have been led to believe that open verandas etc should be included in the size of the property – or has this been changed?

Answer

I suspect it is a misprint. The area of a property on which communal charges are calculated includes covered and uncovered balconies and verandas.

Section 38H(1) of The Immovable Property (Tenure, Registration and Valuation) (Amendment) Law of 1993 – Law 6(1) of 1993 clearly states:

“The area of a unit consists of the covered area surrounded by the outer walls of the unit and the covered and uncovered verandas and the covered and uncovered balconies of the unit are included therein. Where common walls exist between units or between a unit and a jointly-owned property, the area of these walls shall be distributed equally among the units which have common boundaries or between the unit and the jointly-owned property, as the case may be.”

Section 38K(1) of the same law states:

“The owners of all the units shall participate in the expenses which are necessary for the insurance, maintenance, repair, restoration and management of the jointly owned property and for securing the services prescribed by this Part or by the Regulations. The proportion of the share of each owner in the expenses shall be prescribed by the Regulations on the basis of the area of each unit.”